The Season of Sin (Peace In The Storm Publishing Presents) (24 page)

“No.” Her tears dampened the cover.

“Open it.”

“I can’t.” Her fingers trembled beyond control.

“Don’t be afraid. This has to be done.”

“No.” She backed into the dresser.  “I can’t do this.” He stroked her chin as she sobbed.

“If you really care about me than stop this and just leave me alone. Pretend we never met.”

“I can’t, honey.” His tears hit the front of her dress. “I’ve waited for years to find my little girl. And I promised I wouldn’t ever lose you again, Victoria.” He turned her toward the mirror. “Look at us. Is it so impossible?”

She lowered her head.

“Look.” He shook her. “Look at us, Dylan. We look so much a like.”

“No we don’t.”

“Yes we do. Look at the coloring, the features.  You got my nose. Your mother’s eyes.”

“Stop it!” She broke away.  “I’m going to the police!” She got to the door before him this time.

“Dylan you have to let me explain.”

“You stay away from me.”

“Don’t do this sweetheart.”

“You’re sick and demented. You’ve got some fixation on me and you’ve painted these lies from fantasy.”

“No.”

“Yes you did!  You are not my father!”

 “I am your father and Elle Givens was your mother!”

“
What
?” She wobbled. “Oh god you are sick. You’re completely sick and I’m going to the police.” 

“I didn’t commit any crime. You are my daughter. No matter if you wanna face it or not.”

“I wish I never met you.”

She yanked the necklace off, threw it on the floor and left.

Bruce barely heard the faint knock at his door. He opened it to Dylan, sitting on his porch with her face in her lap. She wore a stunning black satin dress and looked more beautiful than she did in his dreams. She had her shoes in one hand and sobbed into her arm. She had runs up and down her stockings.

She raised her head to the porch light. She seemed to have been crying a while but her makeup looked like she’d walked off a stage.

“I’m sorry, Bruce.”

He knelt down.

“I am so sorry for what I…what I did to you. I am so sorry I didn’t stand by you.” She swung her shoes.  “I know I shouldn’t be here and that I’m the last person you wanna see but I had nowhere else to go. No one understands me like you.”

“Dylan.” He pulled her into his arms.

“Oh Bruce I need you now. I know I wasn’t there for you.” She cried into his smudgy T-shirt.  “But please don’t turn your back on me. I have no one. I’m so alone.”

“Shh.” He hoisted her up. “It’s okay, honey. Shh.” He took her inside.

“I’m so sorry, Bruce. You have every reason to hate me.”

“I couldn’t ever hate you, Dylan.” He laid her on the couch.  “Shh, come on. Dry your eyes.” He dried her eyes with a napkin he had from his dinner.

She squirmed.  “I…”

 “You look so beautiful. Like a princess.” He cleaned his oil-stained palms on his jeans. “Shit I’m such a dick, touching your pretty dress with my dirty hands.”

She cried into the napkin. “I love your dirty hands. Oh, Bruce.  I’ve made so many mistakes.”

“Shh, calm down, honey. What’s happened?” He touched her cool face. “You gotta tell me so I can help you.”

 “So they dropped the charges against you huh? I bet it was rough. I’m so sorry for what you went through.”

“Hey I can take care of myself.” He rubbed her hair.  “The only torture was missing you. I can live with anything but that.”

“How can you not hate me after I turned my back on you when you needed me?”

“Hey I wasn’t exactly innocent right?” He dabbed the tears she missed.  “I love you, Dylan. No matter what happens, that will never change.”

“I almost ruined your life. Don’t tell me you can forgive that.”

“Look you’re not responsible for me being in jail. I shouldn’t have lied. But I don’t give a shit right now, tell me what’s wrong.”

“I don’t do anything but cause problems. I’m no good for anything.”

“That’s not true. Stop saying that crazy shit.”

“I’m gonna go away.” She laid her pumps in her lap.  “Everyone would be better off then. I’m no good to anyone.”

“No.” He kissed her. “Don’t fuckin’ say something like that. I’d die without you. I don’t want you to go away, baby.” He kissed her cheek. “I don’t want you to ever go away. Why are you all dressed up?”

“I went out with Nick again.”

“I see.” He bit his bottom lip.  “So he’s still around?”

“I get the feeling you object to our friendship too.”

“Well can’t say I like having my ex hanging around a man old enough to be her father.”

 “He took me to New York City and treated me like a queen.”

“I bet. Well we all ain’t able to do that right?”

“Are you jealous?” She touched his hand. “It’s not like that. After tonight I never wanna see Nick Sebastian again.”

“Why? Something happened?”

“Everything was wonderful. It was one of the most fascinating evenings of my life. But we got back to his hotel and he started acting crazy.”

“Define crazy.”

CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT

“He started talking crazy and saying stuff that didn’t make sense. Then he wouldn’t let me leave. I was so scared, Bruce.”

“What?”

“I’d never seen him like that. The way he looked at me. I haven’t been that afraid since the night I was almost raped.”

“Just what the fuck are you saying? Did he put his hands on you?”

“I just wanted to leave.” She sat up. “That’s all and he wouldn’t let me. He kept saying all this stuff. I only went to see him because I was so depressed about you and he whisked me away and made all my dreams come true.”

“And tried to seduce you didn’t he? Let me guess. He brought you back to his hotel and didn’t take no for an answer right?”

“Wait.”

“And probably laid on that bullshit that you owed him for all he’s done for you right?”

“Wait you don’t understand.”

“Oh I understand. That son of a bitch put the moves on you didn’t he?”

“Bruce.” She raised her arm. “Hold on.”

“That son of a bitch!” He kicked over the table.  “That motherfucker! I’ll kill him!”

“No!” She pulled on his arms.  “Listen!”

“I knew this would happen! I didn’t want you hanging around him.” He went to the door.

“Stop, Bruce! Listen to me!”

“I’m gonna kill him.”

She blocked the door. “Goddamn it, listen to me! That’s your problem you never listen before you fly off the handle. Nick didn’t try anything with me. It was nothing like that.”

“Then what the hell did he do that has you so upset?”

“He says…he said…”

“What?”

“He says he’s my father.” She let go of his shirt.

He slumped against the wall. “Say what?”

“Nick says he’s my father.”

“Wait, your natural father? That’s bullshit.”

“That’s what I told him then he said Elle Givens is my mother. He gave me a necklace and told me I was born in February.”

“Who the hell is Elle Givens?”

“Shit.” She ran back to the couch and got her shoes.  “I gotta go, Bruce.”

“What? Wait you’re in no shape to drive anywhere.”

“I gotta see Detective Matthews.  With what Nick said tonight, he might even be involved in my mom’s murder.”

“You really believe that?”

“I don’t know what to believe about Nick anymore.” She put her shoes on.

“I’m going with you.” He got his keys off the banister.

“No after all I’ve done to you I don’t deserve you being there for me.”

“Well I never deserved you in the first place.” He kissed her. “So now we’re even.”

∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

Nick’s dream of reuniting with Victoria after all these years hadn’t gone as planned. 

He’d expected her to be shocked and upset but hadn’t intended on angry. He set the briefcase beside his chair in the interrogation room.

Would she ever accept that he was her father? Could he get her to?

Bruce walked in with anger blazing from his eyes and his fists swinging.

Was he
always
angry?

Dylan snuggled with Bruce in the corner. Damn it she was afraid. In all this time Dylan hadn’t ever been afraid of Nick and it killed him. He wanted to gather her into his arms and hold her like the night they first met.

Jasmine blew into the room, cursing like a late-night comedian. Jayce tried to hold her back but she knocked him into the table.

Shit.

“Settle down, Ms. Hudson!” Jayce blocked her flying fists. “You gotta control yourself.”

“Control myself? He’s a big fat liar! This entire thing is ridiculous and we won’t entertain this nonsense!”

“It’s not nonsense.” Nick’s throat had grown dry from anxiety.  “What I told Dylan is the truth and it’s about time everyone knows it.”

“You wouldn’t know the truth if it bit you on the balls, Nick!”

“Stop it, Ms. Hudson!” Jayce forced her arms to her side. “Now listen. Nick was kind enough to come down here and answer some questions. He didn’t have to do that.”

“He’s completely insane.” Jasmine stomped to the back of the room. “For all we know he might be the killer and saying these lies is a part of some fantasy he created to get close to my niece.”

Dylan glanced from behind Bruce.

“You need to calm down or I’ll have to ask you to leave,” Jayce said.

“This is my niece we’re talking about.  If he can come up with this bullshit then is it impossible to think he killed Nadia?”

Bruce kissed Dylan’s forehead. “Just like you knew I killed her, Jasmine?”

She opened her mouth to respond but ignored Bruce.

Jayce sat across from Nick. “My main concern is solving Nadia and Shannon’s cases. It’s not to intervene in family drama but I have to admit I’m very curious about what Nick has to say myself.”

Nick cleared his throat. “I’m sure you are, Detective. And I’m sorry for any inconvenience this might cause. I just want to say I never meant to let things carry on as far as they did.”

Jasmine mumbled.

“Dylan the last thing I want to do is hurt you but I can’t let you go on not knowing the truth.”

She held onto Bruce.

“I love you, sweetie. We both felt a connection when we first met and I guess I hoped you knew what it meant.”

“Just please say what you’re gonna say,” Dylan said.  “Get this over with.”

“Okay. How about I start with how Elle and I fell in love?”

∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

Nick sipped from a can of Sprite twenty minutes later. He’d shared the details of his romance with Elle. How they’d met in college. How she’d been a sheltered kid and had latched onto Nick for an escape. Dylan’s inquisitive expression suggested that she recognized similarities between her and Elle. 

Dylan had become everything he pictured her to be. She shared Elle’s spunk and Elle’s lack of self-confidence in making her own decisions.

But nothing about Dylan reminded him of Elle more than her talent for art.

Her eyes lit up when he spoke about Elle’s favorite hobby.

“She was an artist?” She moved away from Bruce for the first time since she got there.

“Yes she was.” Nick focused on the soda can. “She was amazing just like you. Don’t you see, Dylan? That’s where you got your talent from.”

“Oh that is pathetic.” Jasmine sat at the smaller table in the back. “That doesn’t mean anything. Just because people can paint doesn’t mean they are related.”

“No it doesn’t. But Dylan
is
my and Elle’s daughter.”

“And nothing you’ve said confirms that does it?”

Jayce watched Jasmine then turned to Nick. “Tell us about the kidnapping.”

“I was working as usual that night. There’d been friction between Elle and me. She was upset because I’d started working longer hours. The stress of having a new baby didn’t help her either. She kept saying she had no one to turn to and she felt I was abandoning her. She was lonely.”

Dylan eased toward him. “And?”

“That’s when she met Kate in the park.” Nick’s stomach twisted. “And it’s funny but I was the one who suggested Elle go to the park and see if she could meet a friend. Yeah.” He bent the soda can. “I’ll never forgive myself for giving her that idea.”

“You can’t blame yourself. Listen to me okay?” Jayce scooted his chair up. “No matter where Elle went, the same thing would’ve happened. It’s just how things worked out.”

“But I feel like it’s my fault. I always will.”

“What happened then?” Bruce sat on the edge of the table.

“When I got home she told me all about Kate. The next thing I know it’s a month later and Elle’s running to that park every single day. She’s smiling, getting new clothes, starting to lose the baby weight.  She’s feeling more confident and more independent. That was another thing about Elle. She wasn’t very independent.”

Dylan sat down. “What did you think of Kate? Didn’t you pick up signs at all?”

“I never met her. Elle always invited Kate to dinner with us but she always said she couldn’t come. After she kidnapped the baby, I knew it was because she hadn’t wanted to come around
me
. Maybe she thought I’d see through the façade and realize something was up with her.”

“If my wife got that involved with a woman she’d just met I’d demand to meet her at least,” Bruce said.

“It’s not a day of my life I don’t regret that I didn’t ask more questions about Kate or pay more attention. Maybe I was selfish because Elle had finally gotten off my back about spending time with her. I was glad she wasn’t depressed and finally had a friend.” Nick dropped his arms from the table. “So, one night I was working some overtime and that was the night Kate took the baby.  She’d come to our place, lied and said she had some headache or something and Elle went to the store to get her some medicine.” Nick dropped his gaze. “She came back and both of them were gone.”

CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE

“Nick I sympathize with what you’ve gone through,” Jasmine said. “Believe me I do. But you need help.”

“Why do I need help?”

“Because you’re crazy if you think my niece is your daughter.”

“I love Dylan and I’d never wanna hurt her.”